Plastic-sealing apparatus



March 18,v 1952 F. v. coLLlNs 2,589,777

PLASTIC-SEALING APPARATUS Filed July 9, 1949 Patented Mar. 18, 1952 PLASTIC- SEALIN G APPARATUS Fred V. Collins, Des Plaines, Ill., assigner to William F. Stahl, Kenilworth, Ill.

Application July 9, 1949, Serial No. 103,792

4 Claims. (Cl. 21S-47) This invention relates to apparatus for the sealing of plastics; in particular, it concerns an improved rotary apparatus for forming a seam seal between sheets of plastic material.

Sealing together of thermoplastic materials, such as polyethylene and polystyrene, by application of heat is an art which has been growing tremendously in importance in recent years. The earliest technique for forming such seals in general use was the so-called hot-bar method in which a member was heated by any suitable means to a temperature sufficient to melt the plastic being sealed and was then placed in contact with the adjoined plastic sheets. Heat from the hot bar would melt the plastic sheets and, on removal of the hot bar, the plastic would cool and re-set as a unitary piece.

In the formation of continuous or intermittent seam seals, the hot-bar principle was employed in the form of a heated roller under or over which the plastic sheets would be passed.

Hot-bar sealing, in either the form of a reciprocating sealing bar or a heated roller, has never been a satisfactory method of sealing many kinds of plastic materials. Gne objectionable eiect of hot-bar sealing has been its tendency to over-heat the plastic surface immediately adjacent the hot bar or roller. The usual result of this over-heating has been running of the plastic and substantial spoilage of the material being sealed.

In other cases, when the temperature of the hot-bar or roller is reduced sufficiently to prevent running of the plastic, the sealing process is slowed down unreasonably, since under such circumstances considerable time is required for the heat to penetrate the plastic and heat the inner, adjoined surfaces sufciently to effect a seal.

I have learned that the most effective and rapid means of sealing plastic sheets by eX- ternally applied heat is by maintaining the temperature of the sealing bar or roller normally below the fusion temperature of the plastic and raising that temperature rapidly while the sealing member is in contact with the plastic to be sealed. This procedure raises the internal temperature of the plastic rapidly, eifects a good seal, and at the same time does not cause running.

The particular invention described and claimed herein is an improved apparatus for achieving, in the formation of a seam seal, the optimum condition wherein the temperature of the sealing member is below the critical fusion temperature when it rst engages the plastic and is rapidly increased in temperature to effect sealing while the plastic and the sealing member are in contact.

It is accordingly a major object of my present invention to provide a rotary sealing member, capable of producing a seam seal in plastic sheets, wherein means are provided for maintaining the temperature of any given area of the sealing member below the fusion point when such area iirst comes in contact with the plastic, the temperature being thereafter rapidly increased to beyond the fusion point until after the plastic and the given area of the sealing member have moved apart.

A further object of my invention is to provide a rotary sealing member wherein energy from an electrical source is converted into heat for plastic sealing Without necessity for slip rings or other sliding electrical contacts on the rotary member.

Still another object of my invention is to provide a rotary member for effecting seam seals on plastic sheets wherein heat is supplied to the rim of said member one sector at a time, any given sector being heated just as it rotates into engagement with the plastic sheets.

Other objects and advantages of my invention will appear as the specification proceeds.

I have illustrated two embodiments of my invention in the accompanying drawing, of which Figure i is a vertical sectional View of a preferred embodiment of my invention; Fig. 2, a View partly in section and partly in elevation of the Fig. l embodiment, the section being taken along the line 2--2 of Fig. 1; and Fig. 3 is a side View, partly in section, of a second or modified form of my invention.

In Fig. l, a sealing table or flat surface I0 is indicated by a fragmentary showing. A pair of plastic sheets I5 and IE are shown lying on said dat working surface IIJ, and, after passing through the sealing apparatus to be described, sheets I5 and IB are sealed together to form the seam seal Il between said plastic sheets.

The major components of my invention include the wheel II, the iron core I3, and the magnet coil I4, wound on core I3.

Wheel lI is mounted for rotation on a shaft l 2 which may be supported over working surface I0 in any desired manner. I have shown a pulley l 3, driven by a belt i9, as indicative of a suitable means of driving shaft I2; it will be understood that any desired means may be used.

Wheel II, which is keyed to shaft I2, is made of metal and consists, in the embodiment shown,

of a metal hub and six metal spokes, integrally formed from a single piece of stock. The constructional details of wheel II, it is to be understood, may vary widely.

The sealing member proper is a band or rim 20 supported on the ends of the spokes of wheel II and made of Nichrome or other suitable electrical resistance wire.

Shaft I2 is positioned over working surface I so that the lower edge of Nichrome strip ZES, which serves as a rim for wheel II, is substantially flush with or slightly above the upper surface of table I0. A recess Illa in the lower side of table I accommodates a buffer or backing wheel 22, which may be made of wood, composition, soft rubber, or other suitable material. Backing wheel 22 is mounted on a shaft 2| which may be pivoted to any suitable position on table I0. In Fig. 2, a belt Zia is shown as a means for driving roller 22. If desired, positive drive for roller 22 may be vdispensed with.

A spring 23 may be provided to urge roller 22 upward into recess Ia. The orientation of wheel II and roller 22 cau-se the plastic sheets I5 and I6, as they are moved along the surface of table IIJ, to pass between the rollers II and 22 at substantially the level of the top of table Il), as shown at Figs. l and 2.

The outer ends of the spokes of wheel Il are in direct electrical contact with the Nichrome strip 2B which forms the actual sealing element. Spot welding or other suitable means may be employed to secure sealing member 26 to the terminals of the spokes of wheel II if desired.

The spaces or sectors between adjacent spokes on wheel II are nlled in with magnetic core material 25. To maintain suitable isolation between the core sectors 25 and the metal hub and spokes, insulating material 2li is provided as a separator or gasket. In addition to the insulating layers 2d separating the core sectors from the spokes, it should be noted that an insulating layer 2d also separates the core sectors 25 from the sealing member 2Q oriented around the rim of wheel ii.

The outer, peripheral portions of the magnetic core sectors 25 are curved to conform to the generally circular shape of wheel I I.

A magnetic core I3, having the usual U shape with its open ends extending inwardly to form pole pieces ISa, is mounted in any suitable manner above table I0, core I3 being oriented with respect to wheel I I so that pole pieces i3d embrace wheel I i adj aoent the point wherein sealing inember 2E comes in contact with plastic sheet l5. As may .be seen from the position of the seam seal II, the wheel II in the Fig. 1 example is designed for clockwise rotation. Accordingly, pole pieces I 3a are oriented so that they extend backward in a counter-clockwise direction from the point of contact with plastic sheet I5.

A magnet coil I4 is wound on magnetic core I3 in the usual fashion and is connected to anyV convenient source of low-frequency alternating current (connections not shown). As may be best seen from Fig. 2, the gap between pole pieces I3a is only slightly larger than necessary to accommodate wheel I I, so that when one of the magnetic core sectors 25 is interposed between pole pieces i3d, a substantially complete magnetic circuit is formed, broken only by the extremely small air gaps separating the wheel II from the pole pieces I3a.

In the operation of my invention, low-frequency alternating current is passed through coil Id in sufcient magnitude to produce a powerful alternating magnetic eld in core I3. Wheels II and 22 are thereupon set into motion and the plastic sheets I5 and I6 move between the two rollers and in the direction to the left as Fig. 1 is viewed. As one of the magnetic core sectors 25 moves between the pole pieces I3a, a heavy circulating current is set up in the loop circuit formed by two of the spokes of wheel II, the hub of wheel l I, and the sector of Nichrome wire 20 connecting said pair of spokes. Virtually all the electrical resistance in that loop circuit is found in the Nichrome wire sector. As a result, virtually all the energy drawn from the magnetic field by the loop circuit is dissipated in the Nichrome portion thereof. This dissipation of energy results in heating very rapidly the sector of Nichrome wire under consideration, with the result that, long before the magnetic core sector under consideration has passed beyond pole pieces I3a, the Nichrome wire adjacent thereto is well above the critical fusion and sealing temperature of the plastic sheets I5 and I5. As wheel II rotates, the particular magnetic core sector just described passes beyond pole pieces I3a and the circulating currents in the loop circuit just described drop off to a negligible magnitude. Meanwhile, however, the succeeding magnetic core sector has moved into the influence of pole pieces I3a and the next segment of Nichrome wire is accordingly being heated toward fusion temperature.

As may be seen from observation of Fig. l, the wheel II therein shown has six such magnetic core sectors, with the result that six loop circuits exist, each comprising a portion of the Nichrome sealing member 20. Each of those loop circuits is in turn brought within the influence of pole pieces I3a and the corresponding Nichrome sector is accordingly heated to sealing temperature while it is in Contact with the plastic Sheets I5 and I6. In each case, aft-er a core sector has passed beyond pole pieces ISa, the segment of Nichrome sealing member 2D associated therewith cools 0E and remains cool until it next is brought into the range of pole pieces I3a on the next rotation of wheel I I.

The seals formed by the sealing apparatus just described are found to be superior in strength and continuity to those obtained by the prior-art methods of sealing with externally applied heat. The sealing member 20 on the rim of wheel II does produce, in sheets I5 and I6, a continuous seam seal Il, for the reason that enough heat is carried by conduction from the sector of element 20 being heated bycirculating current to raise the temperature of the following portion of element 2U which is in direct contact with a spoke of wheel I I. Asa result, there is no discontinuity in the seam seal Vproduced by the embodiment shown in Fig. 1.

Should a discontinuous seam seal be desired, as might be the case in many applications, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that the ends of the spokes of wheel I I can be trimmed slightly so as to form a radial recess in the sealing member 20 at therpoints where member 2U is secured to the spokes of wheel II. Similarly, by appropriate modification of wheel II and its associated structure, seals of particular length `and conformation can be produced at will.

In Fig. 3, I have shown a modied form of my invention in which I make use of a high-loss Yferrous core material as a means of obtaining localized heat. I -n the Fig. 3 embodiment, the `metal rim 4I, which may be made of copper or .any

heat-conducting metal, serves as the .sealing 5 member and rim or wheel 43. Wheel 43 is carried on a shaft 42 which corresponds to shaft I2 of Fig. 1.

Wheel 43, apart from rim 4|, may be formed entirely of a ferrous core material, preferably powdered iron suspended in a resinous or ceramic binder. If such a core material be used, the iron chosen should be of a type having very high loss characteristics, from hysteresis or eddy currents. Powdered iron cores for magnetic apparatus are well known, and are commercially available in many different types, including the high-loss type preferable for apparatus of the sort shown in Fig. 3.

A ferrous core I3 and magnet coil I4 are provided for the Fig. 3 embodiment, and are oriented in the same manner as in the Fig. 1 form of the invention. While table I and the wheel 22 and other incidental components of the sealing structure are not shown in Fig. 3, it will be understood that these may be identical to the corresponding elements of the apparatus of Fig. l.

In `the operation of the Fig. 3 embodiment, the portion of wheel 43 which is within the influence of the pole pieces I3a of core I3 will grow hot as a result of energy dissipated therein from the intense magnetic eld. This will cause the adjacent portion of sealing member 4I to reach a temperature sufficiently high to fuse and seal the plastic sheets I 5 and I6 to form seam seal I1. As the wheel rotates, the heated portion passes beyond the iniluence of pole pieces I3a and thereupon cools off until it is again re-heated on the next revolution when it again comes between pole pieces I3a.

While I have shown and described herein two specic embodiments of my invention for purposes of illustration, 1t will be understood that many changes in detail may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for sealing plastics comprising a wheel mounted for rotation, the rim thereof being formed of electrical resistance material, electrically conducting means mounted in the plane of the wheel operative to connect together a plurality of pairs of points on the rim to form a plurality of loop circuits spaced around said rim, each of said loop circuits comprising a portion of said rim, and magnetic means mounted adjacent the wheel for passing an alternating eld therethrough, said magnetic means and said wheel being relatively oriented non-symmetrically, such that the magnetic eld in a particular zone of said wheel near the rim thereof is substantially stronger than said eld at any other portion of said wheel, said loop circuits upon rotation of said Wheel passing successively through said zone of strongest field and being at all other times in zones of weaker magnetic fields, whereby in any position of said wheel the magnitudes of the induced currents in said loop circuits are sharply unequal.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein each of said loop circuits is provided with a high-permeability core carried by the wheel therewithin.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein each of said loop circuits is provided with a high-permeability core carried by the wheel therewithin, said core being formed of ferrous material having high-loss properties, whereby said rim is selectively heated by circulation of induced currents in said loop circuits, the hottest portion of said rim being always the portion passing through said zone of strongest eld.

4. Apparatus for sealing plastics comprising a wheel mounted for rotation, the rim thereof being formed of electrical resistance material, said wheel containing also in the plane of said rim a high-permeability core of ferrous material having high-loss properties, and magnetic means mounted adjacent the wheel for passing an alternating eld therethrough, said magnetic means and said wheel being relatively oriented non-symmetrically, such that the magnetic Iield in a particular zone of said wheel near the rim thereof is substantiallly stronger than said eld at any other portion of said wheel, whereby the dissipation of energy in said wheel from said field is sharply localized in said zone of strongest eld, the portion of said rim passing at any given time through said zone of strongest eld being thereby heated to a substantially greater extent than the other portions of said rim.

FRED V. COLLINS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,044,263 Stoyan June 16, 1936 2,114,833 Fincke Apr. 19, 1938 2,177,299 Fredrickson Oct. 24, 1939 2,372,737 Phillips, Jr Apr. 3, 1945 2,443,749 Stunkel June 22, 1948 

